How to Draw Gesture
Summary
TLDRIn this figure drawing tutorial, Stan Prokopenko emphasizes the importance of 'gesture' in capturing the essence of movement. He explains that gesture is not about contours or form but the flow that connects them. Prokopenko suggests practicing quicksketches to internalize gesture recognition, which is crucial for dynamic figure drawing. He introduces concepts like the 'Line of Action' and the use of 'C', 'S', and straight lines to simplify and convey motion effectively. The video also touches on the expressive potential of exaggerating poses and the importance of asymmetry in body language, promising further guidance and resources for mastering gesture drawing.
Takeaways
- đš **Gesture Importance**: Gesture is crucial in figure drawing as it captures the movement and flow, not just the form or contour.
- đ **Understanding Gesture**: Gesture is the essence of motion and action, connecting different parts of a figure in a drawing.
- đ€ **Beyond Details**: Focusing on the gesture rather than just the anatomical details can lead to more dynamic and expressive drawings.
- â±ïž **Quicksketch Practice**: Practicing quicksketches helps in developing the ability to perceive and capture gesture quickly.
- đ¶ **Gesture in Life Drawing**: Gesture is the primary concern in life drawing sessions, where poses vary in duration.
- đ **Seeing the Gesture**: Training the eye to see gesture immediately is key to improving figure drawing skills.
- đ **Gesture and Storytelling**: Gesture can be used to tell a story by capturing body language and conveying emotions.
- đ **Longest Axis Focus**: When drawing, focus on the longest axis of the form to find the fluid motion and gesture.
- đ **CSI Approach**: Use simple curves (C, S, I) to eliminate unnecessary details and capture the gesture effectively.
- â° **Line of Action**: Identify the main line that shows the directional flow of the pose, known as the 'Line of Action'.
- đ **Curve Dynamics**: The 'bendiness' of the curve used in drawing can indicate the level of tension or relaxation in the gesture.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the first video in the figure drawing series by Stan Prokopenko?
-The main focus of the first video in the figure drawing series is on the concept of 'gesture', which refers to the movement that connects the contours, forms, and tones in a drawing.
Why is gesture considered important in figure drawing according to Stan Prokopenko?
-Gesture is considered important because it captures the rhythm, motion, action, and flow of a figure, which are essential for conveying the story and emotions through body language, rather than just focusing on the details of anatomy.
What is the purpose of quicksketch exercises in art school as described by Stan Prokopenko?
-Quicksketch exercises are used to train artists to see and capture the gesture of a figure quickly, which helps in designing details that complement the gesture instead of randomly copying them.
How long does a typical quicksketch session last and what is the range of poses per session?
-A typical quicksketch session lasts 2-3 hours, with poses ranging from 30 seconds to 10 minutes each.
What is the 'Line of Action' in gesture drawing?
-The 'Line of Action' is the main line that shows the directional flow of a pose, often attempting to connect the head to the toes with one long line or a combination of curves.
How does the 'bendiness' of a curve in gesture drawing affect the perception of the gesture?
-A longer, fluid curve gives a relaxed feeling, while a more bent or zig zag curve indicates tension and sudden changes in movement.
What does Stan Prokopenko suggest to do before watching the step-by-step video on gesture quick sketches?
-Stan Prokopenko suggests practicing the concepts of gesture drawing on your own before watching the step-by-step video to have a better understanding and be able to pull more information from it.
Where can viewers find reference photos for gesture drawing practice as mentioned in the video?
-Viewers can find reference photos for gesture drawing practice at proko.com/poses.
What is the significance of the longest axis when finding the gesture of a form?
-The longest axis is significant because it helps in finding the fluid motion from one form to the next, which is essential for capturing the gesture.
What does Stan Prokopenko mean by 'CSI' in the context of gesture drawing?
-In the context of gesture drawing, 'CSI' refers to using simple lines such as C curves, S curves, or straight lines (I) to eliminate unnecessary information and capture the gesture.
How does the asymmetry of the body influence the gesture in figure drawing?
-The asymmetry of the body, with alternating angles from the head to the lower leg, creates alternating C curves that lead the eye through the body, adding to the dynamic flow of the gesture.
Outlines
đš Understanding Gesture in Figure Drawing
Stan Prokopenko introduces the concept of 'gesture' in figure drawing, explaining that it refers to the rhythm, motion, and flow that connect the contours, forms, and tones in a drawing. He emphasizes that gesture is not about the details of anatomy but the movement that ties everything together. Prokopenko suggests practicing gesture drawing to make it second nature, which is crucial for quick sketching. He describes a typical quick sketch session and how it helps in mastering the gesture, allowing artists to design details that complement the gesture rather than copying them randomly. The video promises to cover all necessary concepts for successful gesture-focused quick sketches and hints at future videos that will build on these foundations.
đ Key Concepts for Gesture Drawing
The paragraph delves into the specifics of gesture drawing, starting with identifying the longest axis of a form to capture the fluid motion. It advises using simple lines like c curves, s curves, or straight lines to eliminate unnecessary details and focus on the gesture. The 'Line of Action' is introduced as the main line that shows the directional flow of a pose, which may require breaking down into parts for a more accurate representation. The paragraph also discusses the use of relaxed and tense curves to convey different feelings in a gesture, comparing it to the natural movement of water. Asymmetry in the body's forms is highlighted as a key aspect to consider, and the paragraph concludes with a prompt for viewers to practice these concepts on their own before watching a step-by-step tutorial in the next video. It also mentions resources for reference photos and additional premium content.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄGesture
đĄContour
đĄQuicksketch
đĄLine of Action
đĄCSI
đĄRelaxed and Tense Curves
đĄAsymmetry
đĄBody Language
đĄExaggeration
đĄAction Lines
đĄRhythm
Highlights
Gesture is a fundamental concept in figure drawing, referring to the movement between things, not just the contour or form.
Gesture is essential for capturing the rhythm, motion, action, and flow in a drawing.
Focusing on gesture rather than just details can lead to a more dynamic and expressive drawing.
Practicing gesture drawing can help make it second nature, improving overall figure drawing skills.
Quicksketch exercises are a common way to train the eye to see and capture gesture quickly.
A typical quicksketch session involves drawing multiple poses within a short timeframe.
Mastering quicksketch can lead to significant improvement in figure drawing over time.
Gesture drawing is not just for stick figures but is a foundational skill for more detailed work.
Gesture can be used to tell a story by capturing body language and emotions through a few lines.
Exaggerating poses can help in capturing the essence and emotion of a gesture more effectively.
The 'Line of Action' is a key concept for understanding the main directional flow of a pose.
Using the simplest lines (C, S, I) helps in eliminating unnecessary details and focusing on gesture.
The 'bendiness' of curves in a gesture drawing can convey different levels of tension and relaxation.
Observing the longest axis of a form is crucial for finding the fluid motion in gesture drawing.
The body's asymmetry should be considered to create a more natural and dynamic gesture.
Reference photos and pose sets can be helpful tools for practicing gesture drawing.
Proko's website offers additional resources, including pose sets and premium content for further learning.
The importance of practicing gesture drawing before watching tutorial videos for a deeper understanding.
Transcripts
Hey there, I'm Stan Prokopenko, thanks for watching Proko. This is the first video of
the figure drawing series. And it's probably one of the most important. In this lesson
I'll be covering "gesture"
What the butt-munch is gesture anyway? Gesture, rhythm, motion, action, flow - these are all
words that are used interchangeably and they basically mean the same thing.
They all refer to the movement between things. It's not the contour, or the form, or the
tone. It's the movement that connects the contours, the forms and the tones. For example
if you have 3 balls, the gesture here would be a c curve that describes the relationship
of these balls. This would be the contour, but this is the gesture. It's simple to understand,
but difficult to put into practice when you're actually drawing a human figure. We're so
tempted to draw the details of the anatomy and all the little bumps of the contour because
we think that detail will make our drawing look better. But the reality is, the detail
is nothing without the gesture. You might accidentally find some gesture while you're
copying the contours, but I don't like to rely on accidents.
A better approach would be to practice finding the gesture of the figure so many times that
it becomes second nature. Quicksketch is a common exercise in art school that involves
drawing the model from life within a few minutes. A typical quicksketch session lasts 2-3 hours
with poses ranging from 30 seconds to 10 minutes per pose. Gesture is the primary concern.
Doing this exercise will train you to see the gesture immediately. You can feel it.
Then you will be able to design the details to complement the gesture instead of copying
details randomly.
Your journey of mastering quicksketch will be a long but exciting one. There's a lot
to learn and every time you learn something new your sketches will show improvement. During
a normal session you'll finish anywhere from 25 to 100 drawings. Think about that... You're
drawing the human figure up to 100 times within a few hours. If you do this on a regular basis,
you're going to get better.. The best thing about it, is it's actually fun, if you don't
stress over it... In this video I'll go over all concepts you need to know for a successful
quicketch drawing that focuses completely on gesture. In future videos I'll build on
to that and introduce additional concepts all of which come together. And in the end,
with enough practice you can use all these concepts to produce a completed quicksketch
drawing in 5-10 minutes.
So basically gesture is in everything around us. It's an approach to drawing that you can
use to draw anything.
Use gesture to tell a story by capturing the body language. We use our whole body, not
just words to communicate ideas and emotions. This is what the gesture should capture. What
is the person doing? What is he feeling? What did he just do? Or what is he going to do?
This can be told through just a few lines, which the viewer will recognize as the body
and can identify the emotions that person is feeling just like we can intuitively identify
emotions of the people around us. It's a good idea to exaggerate the pose to tell a better.
As you become more skilled in exaggerating, you will also improve in capturing the subtleties.
You're probably thinking, stan, is this another April fools joke? Are you drawing another
stick figure? no.. Don't think of it as a stick figure. Because that could make your
drawing stiff.. They're not sticks. They're not straight lines. They're action lines.
Observe the pose and analyze the movement. It's more about how it feels, rather than
how it looks.
Later, we will add more structure to these drawings to make the figures feel more solid
and real. So, for those of you who don't find this inspiring and are thinking "I don't want
my people to look like spaghetti" remember that this is not meant to be a finished drawing.
It's a exercise to practice a concept. You're training your mind to see rhythm in everything
you draw. You're training your mind to consider more than just the contours when you're drawing
shapes. It's an important concept that needs to be intuitive. In all these drawings that
you're seeing now the element of gesture was applied to the anatomy to make the figure
dynamic.
Let's go over some important concepts to remember while practicing your gesture drawings.
Longest axis
When you look at a form and try to find the gesture, look at its longest axis. Going down
the length of the torso, down the length of the leg, down the length of the arm.. It's
in the longest axis of each form where you'll find the fluid motion from one form to the
next.
CSI
To eliminate the unnecessary information in the contours and to capture that gesture the
lines you use should be simple. Don't use anything more complicated than a c curve,
s curve, or straight.
You can use combinations of these curves as you move down the figure, but attempt to do
it in as few lines as possible using the simplest lines, C S or I.
Line of Action
The gesture should be drawn with as few lines as possible necessary to capture the idea.
Start by finding the longest action line of the body. Try to find a curve that could connect
the head to the toes. Not all poses can be efficiently described with one long line that
connect the head to the toes, but there is always one main line that shows the directional
flow of the pose. This is called the "Line of Action". In this pose the line of action
would be a c curve showing the major flow from the torso to the legs. But this doesnt
tell the whole story, so this pose would need to be broken up into more parts. I think this
sharp turn in the hips is important, so describing it with a soft curve isn't right. In this
case, I would use a combination of a c curve for the torso, and s curves for the legs.
Relaxed and tense curves
The "bendiness" of the curve you use changes how the gesture feels. A longer, fluid curve
feels relaxed and moves the eye quickly through that flow. As you start to bend the curve
more, you show more energy and more tension in the gesture. Eventually, when it's bent
far enough you can use a zig zag. A zig zag indicates tension, sharp corners, very sudden
changes in the movement.
Nature presents this very well with water. When the water is calm the waves flow in an
S curve rhythm. During a storm, when there's more energy in the water, the waves flow in
a zig zag pattern.
So, when you want to create tension, think zig zag. When you want to show something is
relaxed, use a flowing curve.
Asymmetry of the body
Consider the asymmetrical aspect of the body from the side. The forms alternate in angle
from head, ribcage, pelvis, upper leg and lower leg.
This causes alternating c curves that lead the eye through the body. Like a river flowing
through a stream...
The tendency for us is to make things, but this stiffens the gesture and makes the figure
look like a snowman
Next week I'll show some examples of gesture quick sketches and guide you step by step
through the process. But, I suggest you attempt to practice these concepts on your own before
watching the step by step video next week. You'll have an idea of what it's like and
will be able to pull more information from it because you know what to look for. You'll
have questions you can focus on, and you can compare what you did with what I do. If you
need reference photos, I have some posefile sets you can get at proko.com/poses.
If you want to see a more detailed explanation and plenty of examples.. oh cmon! Really?!
if you want to see a more detailed explanation, plenty of examples and more premium videos
check out proko.com/figure. For every free video that I post during this figure series,
I'm posting additional premium content on proko.com. This week I have...
If you like this video, share the wealth. Tell your friends, post it on your favorite
social network. And click on this button here to subscribe to the Proko newsletter if you
want to be updated about new videos. buh bye!
Ahem.. Squeaky squeaky
Voir Plus de Vidéos Connexes
The 11 Steps to Great Gesture Drawing
LEARN TO DRAW FROM LVL 0 to 100 đ
How to Draw Tips | What are thumbnail sketches? How to use them
Brilliant Customer Service - How to Impress your Customers! - Chapter 4
Teach Yourself Animation at Home for Free | Self Teach Animation Curriculum + Resources
How to draw Hands in 10 Minutes | Tutorial | Drawlikeasir
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)